According to research from the National Cancer Institute, Americans consume around 22 teaspoons of added
sugar per day, with ~50% of added sugar coming from beverages. Because sugar-sweetened beverages are the largest source of added sugar in the American diet,
many studies have delved into this topic.Increased intake of sugary beverages has been associated with negative health effects, such as weight gain, obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, gout, and tooth decay. Higher intake of sugary beverages has also been associated with decreased student academic performance, including the areas of grammar, reading, writing, and math.

To address some of the negative effects of sugar, a number
of cities in the U.S. and other countries have added soda/sugar sweetened
beverage taxes to discourage their purchase. Some have even taken it a step
further, with junk food taxes added in Mexico and Hungary. Meanwhile, Chile is taking an impressive and large-scale approach to confront the obesity epidemic. High sugar beverages have a hefty 18% tax. Warning
labels are put on the front of food and beverage packages with added sugars, sodium,
saturated fats, or calories that surpass certain thresholds. Restrictions are placed on child marketing. In addition, there is a total advertising ban on all TV and cinema from 6 am – 10
am, with warning messages on TV outside of this time.

Funds raised from sugar sweetened beverage taxes and similar taxes may be used for public health initiatives, such as supporting nutrition and physical activities in schools. Benefits of these taxes can include decreased consumption of unhealthy foods, decreased rates of overweight and obesity leading to healthcare cost savings, decreased mortality rates, increased number of quality of life years, and increased years of life for individuals.

Conflicting results have been found regarding whether low/zero
calorie sweeteners are better or not compared to caloric sweeteners. Dr. Richard
Mattes suggested that rather than lumping sweeteners into a category, each type of sweetener presents a unique metabolic challenge. Taste receptors
are located all over the body, and the signaling cascades they initiate vary
depending on the sweetener type and where it binds to in the body. Dr. Eran Elinav noted how the human microbiome varies according to the
individual, and how consumption of the same food or beverage has different effects on different people.

Overall, the fewer added sweeteners you consume, the
better it is for your health. Different guidelines exist for recommended limitations on added sugar
intake. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests limiting added
sugars to less than 10% of total caloric intake. The American Heart Association recommends an intake of no more than half of one’s daily discretionary
calories to come from added sugar. For most women, that's approximately 6 teaspoons per day, or 100 calories from sugar. For men, it's about 9 teaspoons per day, or 150 calories. While it may be difficult to determine the amount of added sugars in your foods and beverages, changes are coming to nutrition facts labels. Added sugars are scheduled to be declared
on nutrition facts labels by 2020 for large manufacturers and by 2021 for small
companies. Some manufacturers have already begun updating their nutrition facts labels!

Saturday, March 11, 2017

This February Sean Conroy and I took care of Wild Harmony Farm in Exeter, Rhode Island! This polycultural farm features beef cattle, chickens, pigs, a vegetable garden, raspberries, blueberries, an apple orchard, maple trees, and bees.

On our first day, we helped farmer Ben Coerper gather sap from maple trees. The maple sap gets boiled down to remove excess water to produce maple syrup. It takes 40 gallons of sap to produce 1 gallon of maple syrup!

Going to the maple trees with draft horse Bud

Collecting maple sap

We also fed and watered the animals, including USDA certified organic Berkshire and Berkshire-Cross hogs that rotationally graze in the woods.

Feeding Bessie, Goose, and Brain

Pinky and her piglets

The Red Devon cattle also rotationally graze and are 100% grass fed. They are only given hay during the cold months and have access to fresh grass during the growing season.

In the winter, the chickens have access to the barn for protection from the cold weather. The chickens are USDA Certified Organic and provide organic eggs. During the growing season the chickens rotationally graze behind the cattle herd on pastures, eating grass and bugs while providing fertilizer and managing pests on the farm.

Chickens

Organic meat: what does it mean?
The pigs, chicken, and eggs at Wild Harmony Farm are USDA Certified Organic. Organic businesses need to show they are
protecting natural resources and biodiversity. To meet organic livestock
requirements, animals need to live in an environment that accommodates
their normal behavior and health with year-round access to the outdoors.
They must be raised on certified organic land and fed 100% certified
organic feed. At Wild Harmony Farm, animals are fed organic and non-GMO grains. Animal health and welfare standards must also be met. Livestock
cannot be given antibiotics, added growth hormones, animal byproducts,
or other prohibited ingredients. Learn more about USDA organic regulations.

It was a fun week on the farm! Wild Harmony Farm products are available wholesale, through their CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), and at their farm store. Read more about Wild Harmony Farm and farmers Rachael Slattery and Ben Coerper on their website.

In addition to lectures, over 300 exhibitors participated at FNCE Boston. I discovered many new food and nutrition related products and had samples galore! One tasty find was Biena Chickpea Snacks, roasted chickpeas that are light, delicious, and crunchy.

FNCE Boston Exhibitors

I enjoyed going to FNCE and learning about the latest nutrition research, learning about new food products, and talking with other nutrition students and professionals!

Irritable bowel syndrome(IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal disorder characterized by abdominal pain or discomfort and abnormal bowel habits, with an estimated global prevalence of 11%. It has unclear causes and is diagnosed based on symptoms rather than structural abnormalities. Probiotic supplementation has been proposed to treat IBS, because the fecal microbiota composition of patients with IBS has been found to be significantly different compared to healthy patients.

A review of 21 primary studies was performed to examine the efficacy of probiotic treatment on IBS symptoms in subjects over 16 years old. Most of the studies reviewed were double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized controlled trials. While some trials examined multi-strain probiotics, others assessed the influence of individual probiotic strains.

The results suggest abdominal pain, bloating, stool frequency, stool consistency, adequate relief, and quality of life are not adequately addressed with multi-strain probiotics in patients with all types of IBS. Different dosages, compositions of probiotic mixtures, treatment lengths, and subtypes of IBS studied make trials on probiotics hard to compare. The results were also impacted by the placebo effect, which may be a common occurrence in IBS trials, because IBS has unclear etiologies and is diagnosed based on subjective report of symptoms.

Meanwhile, impacts of single strains of Escherichia, Bifidobacterium, Saccharomyces, and Lactobacillus were limited and varied according to specific strains. Drawing general conclusions from the studies on single-strain probiotics is not straightforward, as outcomes were strain specific, and some results were only observed in one bacterial strain in one trial.

Due to the inadequate number of studies that demonstrate substantial benefits of probiotics, single- and multi-strain probiotic supplements are not recommended for IBS treatment. However, if patients with IBS are interested, taking up to 8 strains of probiotics and up to 9x10^11 CFU per day has been shown to be safe.

For my food service rotation, I visited and learned about how each of the school cafeterias in the district operates. At NPS, each school is lucky to have its own kitchen! Projects that I was involved with included updating and training the cafeteria managers on the department's standard operating procedures and designing and running a plate waste study at the three secondary schools. I attended meetings and events, such as monthly manager meetings, the USDA Foods Conference, and The Education Collaborative (TEC) food service director meetings. During staff relief, I helped to manage the cafeteria at High Rock Middle School, which is a HealthierUS School Challenge (HUSSC), Gold Award of Distinction winner. The HUSSC is a voluntary certification, highlighting schools with healthier environments by encouraging nutrition and physical activity.

Buffalo chicken "wings of fire" with a warm biscuit, melon, vegetables, and salad for lunch at Needham High School

Throughout the experience, I worked with a variety of staff in the
Nutrition Services department, including the Nutrition Services
director, Nutrition Outreach Coordinator, secretaries, cafeteria
managers, and food service workers. I also worked with other staff and members of the school community, including teachers, custodial staff, and students.

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Making your own lip balm is very simple and rewarding. You only need two ingredients: oil and beeswax. In this post, I will provide directions on how to make your own lip balm, accompanied with photos to illustrate the process.

Essential oils (optional, adds fragrance and prolongs the shelf-life of the lip balm)

Such as cinnamon, lavender, and peppermint

Empty lip balm tubes, jars, or containers for the lip balm

Contact lens cases are also a perfect size!

Directions:

Fill a pot a few inches high with water on the stove over
medium-heat, to make a hot water bath.

Combine the beeswax and oil in a heat-proof measuring cup.

Put the measuring cup in the hot water bath. Occasionally
stir the oil and beeswax well with a spoon. Take off the heat immediately once
all of the beeswax is melted. (Do not turn the heat up to high, because you do not want the oil to go rancid).

Optional: If you would like to use essential oils, they
should be added at the last step. Because essential oils are volatile, they
evaporate easily. After pouring the oil and beeswax mixture into a container, add the essential oil and cap the container immediately. I usually
add 1 drop of essential oil per lip balm tube (0.15 oz) or ~5 drops per 0.5
oz lip balm.

Let the lip balm containers sit upright, until they cool
down to room temperature.

Because I have been trying to eat primarily vegan for the past couple of months without much success, I felt buying a good vegan protein pow...

Disclaimer

Any statements or claims about the possible health benefits conferred by any foods, herbs, or supplements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.